My rickshaw driver keeps pace with taxis as he peddles me through Hanoi’s Old Quarter. The cool wind against my face brings relief from Vietnam’s stifling summer heat. Just as I’m about to relax, I smell smoke. It’s not the ubiquitous smog of unregulated motorbike exhausts. I immediately recognize this aroma as barbecue, like pork …
What to eat (or not) at the Orange County Fair
My first strategy at the OC Fair was to follow the smoke. Where there’s smoke, there will also be good food. Or so it usually goes. I spotted the beef tri-tips smoldering on a grill. They looked awesome. They looked like real Santa Maria barbecue. I immediately got in line and ordered the tri-tip sandwich. It was gross…
Photo of the week: San Jose del Cabo
This is one of my favorite photos from my stay at the beautiful Mar Adentro in San Jose del Cabo, an incredible resort designed (and owned) by Miguel Angel Aragones. I love the brutal simplicity of the beach chairs and umbrellas. I woke up early to catch the sunrise…
Hotel Review: Freehand, Los Angeles
The Freehand Los Angeles opened last week at the corner of 8th and Olive — across the street from legendary dive bar the Golden Gopher. The 226-room hotel resides in the landmark, 12-story Commercial Exchange building, which has been gutted and completely redesigned with an urban-hipster twist on California Craftsman.
This just in: Southern California Journalism Awards!
I’m feeling grateful and blessed to receive the Southern California Journalism Award for restaurant criticism at the Los Angeles Press Club’s annual gala. It is particularly gratifying to see this comment from the judges: “The winning critique blends a keen palate with laugh-out-loud humor in this spot-on reminder that a restaurant is much more than the food on the plate.”
O.C. Review: Meizhou Dongpo, Irvine
My skin is numb. Not just my lips and tongue but my lungs and toes, too. I have never been so uncomfortable as right now because I badly want to eat this stuff. It smells so nice. And it tastes so good for that millisecond before the electric surge…
Photo of the week: Mayakoba
This is one of my favorite images from my last visit to Fairmont Mayakoba in Mexico’s Riviera Maya. Just as I was sitting down for lunch, it started to rain and a blackbird took cover…
Photo of the Week: Sydney Opera House
The last time I was in Sydney, I was amazed at the spectacular sunrises and sunsets over the harbor and the famous opera house. I snapped this shot just after sunrise, when the sun finally broke through the morning clouds. Moments earlier, the sky exploded with pinks, yellows and oranges, which I also captured…
72 Hours at Grand Velas Los Cabos, 27 photos
The original Grand Velas revolutionized the all-inclusive resort sector in the Riviera Maya when it opened there more than 10 years ago. And now comes Grand Velas Los Cabos, which is guaranteed to be a game-changer for Mexico’s Baja Peninsula…
Photo of the week: Langostine at Grand Velas Los Cabos
This is the langostino al carbon from Frida restaurant at Grand Velas Los Cabos, the newest edition to the Grand Velas resort family. The langostine is served with a chipotle-molasses sauce, esquites (corn salad) and a little blanket made from red chilies (like a spicy fruit roll-up)…
Heli-fishing at Nimmo Bay, BC
The helicopter lifts, then tilts back, back, back… The trees spin sideways. The bay slips out from under us. The sky comes rushing forward. Clouds. Blue. An eagle… The trees begin righting themselves. We were upside down for only a split second before completing the loop-d-loop. It’s the closest I’ve ever come to weightlessness, and though I want to retain my composure, I can’t wipe the silly grin off my face. We feather toward the lake, landing softly on one of the resort’s three over-water helipads.
Hotel Review: Taj Falaknuma Palace, Hyderabad, India
On the outskirts of modern, high-tech Hyderabad, on a hilltop in the heart of the Old City, one of India’s finest historic palaces recently opened as a luxury hotel…
The 10 best bowls of ramen in O.C.
Orange County is ramen paradise. We have it good here. Really, really good. Here are the 10 best. You won’t go wrong with any one of these, but you will have to wait in line at all of them…
Hotel Review: LondonHouse, Chicago
The LondonHouse opened in May and overlooks the Chicago River from the famous corner of Michigan Avenue and Wacker Drive. The 22-story historic landmark emerged from a dramatic three-year reconstruction project that saw the addition of a glass and steel annex next door, juxtaposing the original beaux arts structure with an ultra-modernist annex, creating a 452-room hotel…
72 Hours in Chicago, 27 photos
Forever one of the world’s most significant cities for architecture, Chicago’s skyline has grown even more spectacular in recent years, both around the river and along the lakefront. Here’s a quick look around of the city I used to call home.
Hotel Review: The Robey, Chicago
After what seemed like the longest delay in hotel-opening history, The Robey finally opened its doors in November in the heart of Chicago’s Bucktown/Wicker Park neighborhood. A member of Design Hotels, the 69-room, 12-story Robey is the second U.S. property for Mexico City-based Grupo Habita…
